| Team Name: | Brandon Bobcats |
| Team Link: | |
| Athletics Name: | Brandon Bobcats |
| University: | Brandon University |
| Sex: | men |
| Location: | Brandon, Manitoba |
| Color1: | Blue |
| Color2: | Gold |
| Hex1: | 1B3664 |
| Hex2: | FECC08 |
| Usportstourneys: | 1974, 1975, 1981, 1983 |
| Conference Tournament: | 1981, 1983 |
| Conference Season: | 1974, 1975, 1980, 1981, 1983 |
The Brandon Bobcats men's ice hockey team was an ice hockey team representing the Brandon University. The team was active in most seasons from 1909 until its permanent suspension in 2002.[1]
Brandon College began sponsoring ice hockey in 1909. Originally called the 'Brandon Caps', the team played at the intermediate (tier II) level of college hockey as well as in local junior leagues. They twice competed for the Turnbull Cup, the provincial amateur championship in the 1920s, however, they were eliminated before the championship rounds.
After World War II, Brandon joined the Big Six Intermediate Hockey League (BSIHL), playing in the league for five seasons. In 1954, the team joined the Western Canadian Intercollegiate Athletic Union (WCIAU), playing senior collegiate hockey for the first time. The Caps didn't have much success against the top level of competition so the program returned to the Intermediate level in 1958. The Caps then spent the next 12 seasons in the SouthWest Hockey League (SWHL), winning championships in 1961 and 1969.
Once the school had become a full university and renamed its athletic programs as 'Bobcats', the hockey program was ready to take their second chance at senior hockey. They joined the WCIAU's successor (Western Canadian Intercollegiate Athletic Association) in 1969 and were a far more competitive team then they had been in the 50s. However, just three years later, the conference was split in two to cut down on travel expenses. Brandon was one of the founding members of the Great Plains Athletic Association (soon to be called Great Plains Athletic Conference) along with two schools from Winnipeg and one from Thunder Bay. After finishing last in the inaugural season, the Bobcats jumped to the top of the standings and won consecutive league titles. The championships earned Brandon a pair of trips to the University Cup, however, the team was unable to win any of their games. The early 1980s saw Brandon win two more league titles, this time through a playoff, but they were still unable to make any headway in the national tournament. Brandon finished its time in the GPAC by being barred from the 1985 playoff for making illegal payments to student athletes.
In 1985, the GPAC was down to just three teams that sponsored varsity ice hockey. With the conference on the cusp of losing its qualifying bid for the University Cup, all three teams were accepted into Canada West. This move, while necessary, proved to be disastrous for the Bobcats. For more than a decade, Brandon finished in the bottom half of league standings (often in last place), and didn't play a single playoff game. Even after the conference postseason was expanded in 1998, Brandon had little chance at winning a title and by the early 21st century, the program was on its last legs. Without a single winning record during their time in Canada West, and after consecutive last-place finishes in 2001 and 2002, the school decided to end the program.[2]
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points
| Extra-League Champion | National Semifinalist | Conference regular season champions | Conference Division Champions | Conference Playoff Champions |
| Season | Conference | Regular Season | Conference Tournament Results | National Tournament Results | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conference | Overall | ||||||||||||||
| GP | W | L | T | Pts* | Finish | GP | W | L | T | % | |||||
| 1949–50 | BSIHL | 10 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 6th | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1950–51 | BSIHL | 10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 16 | 4th | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | Lost Semifinal series, 0–3 (Dauphin Kings) | ||
| 1951–52 | BSIHL | 19 | 6 | 13 | 0 | 12 | 5th | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1952–53 | BSIHL | 20 | 1 | 19 | 0 | 2 | 6th | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1953–54 | BSIHL | 10 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 6th | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1954–55 | WCIAU | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 3rd | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1955–56 | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1956–57 | WCIAU | 12 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 4th | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1957–58 | WCIAU | 12 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 4 | 4th | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1958–59 | SWHL | 12 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 16 | 2nd | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1959–60 | SWHL | 9 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 14 | 2nd | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1960–61 | SWHL | 16 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 30 | 1st | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | Won Championship | ||
| 1961–62 | SWHL | 20 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 33 | 2nd | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1962–63 | SWHL | 16 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 23 | 2nd | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1963–64 | SWHL | 14 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 16 | 5th | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1964–65 | SWHL | 14 | 5 | 9 | 0 | 10 | T–7th | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1965–66 | SWHL | 10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 12 | 8th | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1966–67 | SWHL | 8 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 3 | T–11th | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1967–68 | SWHL | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 4th | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| 1968–69 | SWHL | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | Won Championship | ||
| bgcolor=cccccc colspan="18" | Program changed name to 'Brandon Bobcats' | ||||||||||||||
| 1969–70 | SWHL | 12 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 40 | 2nd | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | |||
| Totals | GP | W | L | T | % | Championships | |||||||||
| Regular Season | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | 1 SWHL Championship | |||||||||
| Conference Post-season | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | 2 SWHL Championships | |||||||||
| Regular Season and Postseason Record | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ||||||||||
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, SOL = Shootout Losses, Pts = Points
| U Sports Champion | U Sports Semifinalist | Conference regular season champions | Conference Division Champions | Conference Playoff Champions |
| Season | Conference | Regular Season | Conference Tournament Results | National Tournament Results | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conference | Overall | ||||||||||||||||
| GP | W | L | T | OTL | SOL | Pts* | Finish | GP | W | L | T | % | |||||
| 1969–70 | WCIAA | 14 | 7 | 7 | 0 | – | – | 14 | 5th | 14 | 7 | 7 | 0 | ||||
| 1970–71 | WCIAA | 20 | 4 | 16 | 0 | – | – | 8 | 7th † | 20 | 4 | 16 | 0 | ||||
| 1971–72 | WCIAA | 20 | 8 | 12 | 0 | – | – | 16 | T–5th | 22 | 8 | 14 | 0 | Lost Play-in series, 9–12 (Manitoba) | |||
| 1972–73 | GPAA | 12 | 3 | 9 | 0 | – | – | 6 | 4th | 12 | 3 | 9 | 0 | ||||
| 1973–74 | GPAC | 18 | 11 | 7 | 0 | – | – | 22 | 1st | 20 | 11 | 9 | 0 | Lost West Quarterfinal series, 0–2 (Calgary) | |||
| 1974–75 | GPAC | 22 | 17 | 5 | 0 | – | – | 34 | 1st | 24 | 17 | 7 | 0 | Lost West Quarterfinal series, 0–2 (Alberta) | |||
| 1975–76 | GPAC | 18 | 10 | 8 | 0 | – | – | 20 | 2nd | 18 | 10 | 8 | 0 | ||||
| 1976–77 | GPAC | 24 | 8 | 16 | 0 | – | – | 16 | 5th | 24 | 8 | 16 | 0 | ||||
| 1977–78 | GPAC | 24 | 2 | 21 | 1 | – | – | 5 | 5th | 24 | 2 | 21 | 1 | ||||
| 1978–79 | GPAC | 24 | 8 | 16 | 0 | – | – | 16 | 3rd | 24 | 8 | 16 | 0 | ||||
| 1979–80 | GPAC | 20 | 13 | 6 | 1 | – | – | 25 | 1st | 23 | 14 | 8 | 1 | Lost Championship series, 1–2 (Regina) | |||
| 1980–81 | GPAC | 24 | 23 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 46 | 1st | 28 | 25 | 3 | 0 | Won Championship series, 2–0 (Manitoba) | Lost Pool 1 Round-robin, 3–6 (Calgary), 3–10 (Moncton) | ||
| 1981–82 | GPAC | 24 | 18 | 5 | 1 | – | – | 37 | 2nd | 28 | 20 | 7 | 1 | Won Semifinal, 5–4 (Manitoba) Lost Championship series, 1–2 (Regina) | |||
| 1982–83 | GPAC | 24 | 16 | 6 | 2 | – | – | 34 | 1st | 29 | 18 | 9 | 2 | Won Championship series, 2–1 (Manitoba) | Lost Pool 1 Round-robin, 2–6 (Saskatchewan), 4–5 (Wilfrid Laurier) | ||
| 1983–84 | GPAC | 24 | 18 | 6 | 0 | – | – | 36 | 2nd | 28 | 20 | 8 | 0 | Won Semifinal, 5–4 (Regina) Lost Championship series, 1–2 (Manitoba) | |||
| 1984–85 | GPAC | 24 | 12 | 9 | 3 | – | – | 27 | 3rd | 29 | 20 | 5 | 4 | Brandon was barred from postseason play for making illegal payments to players. | |||
| 1985–86 | Canada West | 28 | 13 | 15 | 0 | – | – | 26 | 5th | 28 | 13 | 15 | 0 | ||||
| 1986–87 | Canada West | 28 | 10 | 18 | 0 | – | – | 20 | 6th | 28 | 10 | 18 | 0 | ||||
| 1987–88 | Canada West | 28 | 8 | 18 | 2 | – | – | 18 | 6th | 28 | 8 | 18 | 2 | ||||
| 1988–89 | Canada West | 28 | 6 | 21 | 1 | – | – | 13 | 7th | 28 | 6 | 21 | 1 | ||||
| 1989–90 | Canada West | 28 | 12 | 16 | 0 | – | – | 24 | 6th | 28 | 12 | 16 | 0 | ||||
| 1990–91 | Canada West | 28 | 7 | 16 | 5 | – | – | 19 | 8th | 28 | 7 | 16 | 5 | ||||
| 1991–92 | Canada West | 28 | 1 | 25 | 2 | – | – | 4 | 8th | 28 | 1 | 25 | 2 | ||||
| 1992–93 | Canada West | 28 | 3 | 21 | 4 | – | – | 10 | 8th | 28 | 3 | 21 | 4 | ||||
| 1993–94 | Canada West | 28 | 5 | 18 | 5 | – | – | 15 | 8th | 28 | 5 | 18 | 5 | ||||
| 1994–95 | Canada West | 28 | 8 | 18 | 2 | – | – | 18 | 7th | 28 | 8 | 18 | 2 | ||||
| 1995–96 | Canada West | 28 | 6 | 21 | 1 | – | – | 13 | 8th | 28 | 6 | 21 | 1 | ||||
| 1996–97 | Canada West | 26 | 5 | 19 | 2 | – | – | 12 | 8th | 26 | 5 | 19 | 2 | ||||
| 1997–98 | Canada West | 28 | 10 | 17 | 1 | – | – | 21 | 6th | 30 | 10 | 19 | 1 | Lost Division Semifinal series, 0–2 (Manitoba) | |||
| 1998–99 | Canada West | 28 | 12 | 13 | 3 | – | – | 27 | 6th | 30 | 12 | 15 | 3 | Lost Division Semifinal series, 0–2 (Manitoba) | |||
| 1999–00 | Canada West | 28 | 11 | 17 | 0 | – | – | 22 | 6th | 32 | 13 | 19 | 0 | Won Division Semifinal series, 2–0 (Manitoba) Lost Division Final series, 0–2 (Saskatchewan) | |||
| 2000–01 | Canada West | 28 | 4 | 21 | 3 | – | – | 11 | 8th | 28 | 4 | 21 | 3 | ||||
| 2001–02 | Canada West | 28 | 5 | 20 | 3 | – | – | 13 | 8th | 28 | 5 | 20 | 3 | ||||
| Program Suspended | |||||||||||||||||
| Totals | GP | W | L | T/SOL | % | Championships | |||||||||||
| Regular Season | 815 | 312 | 460 | 43 | 5 GPAC Championships | ||||||||||||
| Conference Post-season | 26 | 11 | 15 | 0 | 2 GPAC Championships | ||||||||||||
| U Sports Postseason | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 4 National tournament appearances | ||||||||||||
| Regular Season and Postseason Record | 849 | 323 | 483 | 43 | |||||||||||||